Tag Archives: teacher as transformer

Companions

Posted on October 23, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

I am preparing for a trip to Bainbridge and a retreat. This is part of a Leadership Academy presented by the Centre for Courage and Renewal. This is the second part of the process and it has been truly rewarding as I find my way on this journey called life with companions here at home, from all over North America and, sometimes, beyond.

Beloved other

An invitation,

For carried alone

Troubles weight us down

Each step, a struggle.

But, lightened,

Grow strong together

Backs straighten–

Shoulders square–

Heads held high.

Journey together,

Loads shared

Trust born

Become companions

Break bread together.

9 Comments

Posted in Community, Mindful Life, Poetry, Reflective Moments and tagged community, creativity, Judy Brown, leadership, Parker Palmer, poetry, teacher as transformer. Bookmark the permalink.

End of Week

Posted on October 20, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

Turn the soil

Plant the seeds

Offer precious food

Sustaining liquid

Nourish the spirit

A soul grows,

Buoyed–

A light shines

Reveals the path

With each step taken.

Breathe

Barely audible

Life giving

End of week arrives

I wait quietly,

I pause patiently,

I till tenderly,

Turn the soil

Plant the seeds

Take care.

4 Comments

Posted in Mindful Life, Poetry, Reflective Moments, Sabbath and tagged creativity, Mindful Practice, nature, poetry, sabbath, spirituality, teacher as transformer. Bookmark the permalink.

The Way it Is

Posted on October 19, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

A common theme has followed me the last little while. It has wound its way through my posts, my thoughts, and it seems in the daily discourse I have with songs I hear or poetry I read. It is the idea that as much as I try to hold on to the way things are, they are still in a constant rhythm of change. It reminds of Heraclitus’ quote: You could not step twice into the same river; for other waters are ever flowing on to you. I find it is more complicated than that, as the same person cannot step into the river. With each ensuing moment, I change and the world I live in and with changes.

Yesterday, as I was driving home, Tommy Castro, a San Francisco blues performer, came on the radio with a song called It Is What it Is. The lyrics of the refrain go like this:

Yeah, I am what I am,

‘Cause I ain’t what I used to be.

‘Cause it is what it is,

But it ain’t what it used to be.

Sometimes, as much as I want things to remain the same or return to an idealized past, they cannot. Part of the reason, a big part, is I am not who I was a moment ago. Today, I flipped open one of the many books of poetry books I enjoy and found this William Stafford poem which echoed the lyrics above.

There’s a thread you follow. It goes among

things that change. But it doesn’t change.

People wonder about what you are pursuing.

You have to explain about the thread.

But it is hard for others to see.

While you hold it you can’t get lost.

Tragedies happen; people get hurt

or die; and you suffer and get old.

Nothing you can do can stop time’s unfolding.

You don’t ever let go of the thread.

10 Comments

Posted in Mindful Life, Poetry, Reflective Moments, Synchronicity and tagged conversational journey, creativity, Heraclitus, Mindful Practice, poetry, teacher as transformer, Tommy Castro, William Stafford. Bookmark the permalink.

Circle of Appreciation

Posted on October 19, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

”A great blog is a space where one brings others into their world with thoughts, aspirations, and visions of what is possible. It will transcend time as visitors will join the day, but discover the past of the member of this vibrant community. Digital communities of this nature will be respectful and honest spaces shrinking the world and dissolving boundaries.”

I am grateful to Marsha Lee who streams her thoughts in many ways and helps me navigate the shoals of this new community. She is a writer, innovator, and teacher on her blog.

I acknowledge and invite several bloggers I was fortunate to find as I transformed my blog from an intermittent one without a focus to one with real purpose, I hope. I followed their efforts and recognized a blog is about connecting with me and, when that occurs, I will connect with others. I know a couple do not accept awards, but I wanted to acknowledge and thank them.

I appreciate Melody at Meanwhile, Melody Muses. She is a wonderful poet and photographer. Her inspirational words and imagery convinced me the digital community was about an inner journey of self-discovery on a personal spiritual journey.

A second blogger I appreciate is Mike at Mike’s Look at Life. Mike is a wonderful photographer who occasionally shares poetry. His photography is a journey of the daily life and its past. He reveals the extraordinary in the ordinary; those parts of daily life I often drove by.

I appreciate is Yaz at Free Your Mind. She leaves many uplifting comments about my posts and shares the need to find one’s truth in both the good fortune and tragedy. She reaffirms a need to search and find community in her posts and frequent comments.

I appreciate Carolyn’s posts on ABC of Spirit Talk and frequent journeys to my blog. She reminded me in her words that living my life as my life, rather than someone else’s life, is essential. Her ballroom dancing and her gently worded reflections speak volumes about her spirit.

I appreciate Mimi at Waiting for the Karma Truck. She shares poetry, a love of music, and life experiences. Mimi responds to, as best as I can determine, every comment on her blog. She demonstrated blogs are a place of genuine conversation.

I appreciate David at Lead.Learn.Live. We share some key ingredients-ice hockey is just a place to begin. David shares humour, quotes, and enthusiasm for life. My favourite posts are those at 4:00 AM when David is viewing the world more optimistically lens than I do.

To fully take part in the Līgo Circle of Appreciation:
~
* Complete this sentence about blogging: ”A great blog is…”
* Refer back to the blogger who invited you
* Invite 2 bloggers to join the Līgo Circle of Appreciation on a post

8 Comments

Posted in Awards, Blogging, Community, Writing and tagged awards, blogging, community, creativity, teacher as transformer, writing. Bookmark the permalink.

Life Arrives

Posted on October 18, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

I read comments today in response to yesterday’s post, Transformation, and found words emerging. They remind me of the unnecessary chase. I only need patience and life arrives in each moment, fully revealed in its extraordinary nature. Life is not a race or hunting trip in which I seek the biggest prize.

When I seek

When I chase

Am active

I fail.

Patience

When I sit

I need not seek

Life discovers me.

Found

I wait

Life arrives

I only need sit.

6 Comments

Posted in Mindful Life, Poetry, Reflective Moments, Synchronicity and tagged creativity, Mindful Practice, mindfulness, poetry, spirituality, teacher as transformer. Bookmark the permalink.

Transformation

Posted on October 16, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

When I write and post, I do not know where I go. Each step is its own process without rehearsal.

A step at a time;

A moment at a time

The outlook changes

With each step

With each moment.

The world changes every so slowly

Yet, gracefully

Seek no material reward

Yet, the reward is priceless

A dance with life

Unrehearsed.

Change shines outward

A radiant light shines forth

Illuminates the path

If I am present

The world is a gift

A gift of creation.

18 Comments

Posted in Mindful Life, Poetry, Reflective Moments and tagged creativity, Mindful Practice, poetry, spirituality, teacher as transformer. Bookmark the permalink.

Mindful Attitude

Posted on October 16, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

I read three articles this weekend and Father Richard Rohr’s daily meditation this morning. I found a clear message in each source and this message has slowly been revealed. Sabbath is a necessary part of my life and I slowly discover its purpose in a mindful attitude. It is in life lived mindfully I obtain a radical unity with my self, creation, neighbor, enemy, and always with God, step by step.

A mindful attitude–

Seek to choose well

Blend fiery passion

With compassion’s loving kindness.

Let life’s fruit mature;

Ripen deeply

Nurture life’s fully.

A spiritual banquet nourishes

Deepest meanings revealed

I Respond to life’s bounty.

Assume responsibility

For one’s self

For each other.

Welcome the world

Understand–

With childlike wonder

Become one;

Become whole

Transform the self.

6 Comments

Posted in Mindful Life, Poetry, Reflective Moments, Sabbath and tagged creativity, father richard rohr, Mindful Practice, poetry, Richard Rohr, spirituality, teacher as transformer. Bookmark the permalink.

From Teaching a Stone to Talk

Posted on October 14, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

Annie Dillard is a wonderful writer whose prose has a great poetic quality. Her words ask me to find quiet and solitude provided on the Sabbath. In that quiet, I go deeper and seek peace among the turmoil.

“In the deeps are the violence and terror of which psychology has warned us. But if we ride these monsters deeper down, if you drop them further over the world’s rim, you find what our sciences cannot locate or name, the substrate, the ocean or matrix or ether which buoys the test, which gives goodness its power for good, and evil its power for evil, the unified field: our complex and inexplicable caring for each other, and for our life together here. It is given. It is not learned.”

Take care and see you Monday.

5 Comments

Posted in Poetry, Reflective Moments, Sabbath, Writing and tagged Annie Dillard, community, literature, Mindful Practice, philosophy, poetry, quotes, spirituality, teacher as transformer, writing. Bookmark the permalink.

It Is I Who Must Begin – Vaclav Havel

Posted on October 12, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

I made a promise coming into the school year. I would keep my head, do only what I can, and not flounder. I won’t let things get me down. I find solace in writing, nature, with Kathy, and in reading poetry. Some days I just open a book and find a poem which speaks to me in such a clear voice I think the poet stands or sits across from me sharing their words. That is what happened with this poem by Vaclav Havel.

It is I who must begin,

Once I begin, once I try—

here and now,

right where I am,

not excusing myself

by saying that things

would be easier elsewhere,

without grand speeches and

ostentatious gestures,

but all the more persistently

—to live in harmony

with the “voice of Being,” as I

understand it within myself

—as soon as I begin that,

I suddenly discover,

to my surprise, that

I am neither the only one,

nor the first,

nor the most important one

to have set out upon the road.

Whether all is really lost

or not depends entirely on

whether or not I am lost.

26 Comments

Posted in Mindful Life, Reflective Moments and tagged Mindful Practice, philosophy, poetry, reading poetry, teacher as transformer, Vaclav Havel, writing. Bookmark the permalink.

Insight

Posted on October 11, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

The picture below was not taken today. Winter arrived. In some parts of our fair province 10-15 cm (3-5 inches) of snow fell. The insight is that it will be back up about 15 C on the weekend. Behind each cloud lays blue sky. I only have to wait.

Behind sullen clouds;

Insight awaits

In spaciousness.

Effortlessly

Be present

Hear silence.

In refuge

Rest heart and mind

Drift with the current.

Behind clouds;

Blue sky

Be patient.